New Beginnings
by Falling Phoenix
Summary: This story begins the first day of fifth year through Ginny's eyes. I based it off of my life, so things might get complicated. Rating for language for now. Enjoy!


**New Beginnings**

**by Falling Phoenix**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the spiffy world of Harry Potter!**

**Chapter One: The First Day**

Ginny blinked in the early morning sunlight as she stood on the grounds of Hogwarts. She loved coming out here early to take a stroll around the lake before her first day. It had become her tradition: every year, of the first day of classes, she would get up at 7:00 and walk around the lake to watch the sun rise.

As she finished her stroll, she checked her watch to see that she still had half an hour until breakfast. She sat herself down in the crook of her favorite tree and curled up like a cat. She sat for a while, gazing at nothing in particular, her mind wandering. She closed her eyes lazily.

"Hey!"

Ginny snapped her eyes open. Harry was standing in front of her with a mean, offended look in his eyes.

"Hi, Harry. What are you –"

"You're in my spot!" he said rudely.

Ginny stared at him, confused. "What are you talking about Harry?"

"What am I talking about? I'm talking about you, being in my spot!" he said, fuming. "This is my tree that I sit under when I can't sleep. This is the tree that me and Ron and Hermione used to do our homework under. This is the tree my dad and Lupin and Sirius used to sit under." He stopped talking and swallowed hard. He looked down at his feet, then away, out across the lake, as though he could see something on the opposite bank.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know anyone else liked to come out here this early," she said, breaking the saddened silence.

"Well, I guess I'll just go and get some breakfast, and leave you here with your tree." She stood up.

Harry seemed to come out of a reverie, and it took him a second to remember what she had just said. He looked at her as if he had only just noticed she was there. "Yeah… yeah, breakfast sounds nice," he said, looking at the ground again, as though Ginny's statement had been an invitation.

"Um… ok,'' said Ginny, not sure whether to be confused or worried for Harry. "Well, then… let's go, shall we?"

They started off up the lawn towards the castle. As they walked, Ginny looked at him and wondered what he was going through. It had been nearly three months since Sirius was killed, so Harry must be at least beginning to move on by now. But he didn't seem to be. All summer, he had been like this; quiet, reserved, and he would always get reminiscent and sad at the mention of Sirius' name. She was worried about him…

As they walked through the huge front doors of Hogwarts into the entrance hall, they could hear that there were a surprising number of people in the Great Hall for 7:30. Ginny supposed that most of them were probably first years that were undoubtedly worried about being late to classes on their first day. Or perhaps they just couldn't sleep out of nerves, just like her on her first day four years ago.

Harry stopped before the entrance to the Great Hall. He stood just in front of the doorway, and didn't move. Ginny looked at him, unsure of what to do. "Harry?" she asked softly. Harry ignored her, but moved to the side of the doorway, leaned against the wall, and closed his eyes. "Harry, you need to eat," she said, more forcefully this time.

He opened his eyes and looked at her, apparently confused as to why she was still there. "I… what? I need to go… get my bag.'' He made to move around her to go up the marble stairway, but she blocked him, glaring at him. He had done the same thing last night, before the start of term feast. He had come in the castle, looked in the great hall, and then made up an excuse to go upstairs so he wouldn't have to face the whole school. Ginny knew that he probably wasn't ready to face a huge group of people who would congratulate him and try to talk to him to show him they were still on his side, even though just over two months ago they all thought he was a raving mad lunatic. She knew he wouldn't be able to deal with all that very well just yet, but he needed to eat. She was not going to let him starve himself over all those stupid people.

"Come on, Harry. You need to come get some food. And you need to get your class schedule!" She glared at him again, but he just looked away and muttered "No, I'd rather not…"

The old Weasley temper shot through Ginny; now she was really cross. "Enough of this. You're eating." And she grabbed him by the elbow and steered him into the hall. He struggled as they walked through the doorway, but she held on tighter.

As they passed the Slytherin table, Malfoy called out "Oh, look! Weasley's got herself a new bitch. She must have tossed that stupid nigger. Good God, girl, you really pick the worst ones!"

At this, Harry wrenched his arm from Ginny's grip as several Slytherins howled with laughter. He turned sharply and whipped out his wand, making for the Slytherin table, a look of loathing in his eyes. Ginny grabbed his arm for the second time in a minute and hissed in his ear "Harry! No! The teachers are all watching!"

Harry stopped moving abruptly, still glowering towards Malfoy, who looked temporarily frightened at the hatred in Harry's gaze. Then with immense effort he lowered his wand, turned, and walked back towards the Gryffindor table.

Ginny glanced up at the staff table, and saw Professor Snape watching Harry with a beady eye.

Harry flumped down a good six seats away from any other person. Ginny sat down next to him with good grace, trying not to look offended at what Malfoy had said. Both were silent as they started eating.

Just then, Ron and Hermione walked into the Great Hall, talking quietly and laughing. They walked over and sat down across from Ginny and Harry. The smiles left over from their giggles faded as they saw the looks on Harry and Ginny's faces.

"Troubles?" Hermione asked.

"Malfoy," Ginny spat much more savagely than she had meant. She had told herself she wouldn't let Malfoy get to her.

"What did he do this time?" asked Hermione cautiously.

Ginny shook her head slightly at Hermione, while Harry wasn't looking.

Just then, McGonagall moved along the table towards them, handing out schedules. Hermione, Ron and Ginny all took schedules from her and began examining them as McGonagall walked back towards the staff table.

Harry grudgingly took the schedule Hermione was holding out to him, and was gloomily consulting it when Ron said "Well, it's not as bad as last year. No Potions, no Divination and best of all, no Umbridge."

"More like Umbitch, really," said Harry with disgust. Ginny, Ron and Hermione looked at him, not sure how to react to his comment.

Harry noticed their stares. "What?" he said defensively. "I mean, the woman was horrible!" Harry let out a noise that was half scoff-half growl. "I wish she had just curled up and died, then we wouldn't have had to put up with her!"

The other three were still silent, carefully avoiding each others' eyes. Harry stood up, taking their hint that they were uncomfortable at the extremes the conversation had taken.

Harry reached for his bag. "Right, well, see you all in-" he glanced down at the new schedule still clutched in his hand "-Transfiguration. Bye!" He said this last word cheerily, as though he had no recollection that he had just been wishing that someone would actually die.

Hermione, Ron and Ginny were silent until Harry had left the Hall.

"Oh my," said Hermione softly, speaking for the first time in minutes.

"What the bloody hell was that about?" asked Ron in a manner that told Ginny quite clearly that he would have been angry if he hadn't been so confused.

Ginny looked sad and slightly guilty. "I don't know," she said tentatively. "Well, when we first came in the Hall, Malfoy made a really horrible comment about-" she shook her head sharply and closed her eyes, not wanting to bring up the subject again. "Anyway, I suppose he's just taking it out on someone else, because I wouldn't let him shout at Malfoy in front of all the teachers, and because Snape was watching."

Ginny didn't look at either Ron or Hermione while she explained this, but now she looked up at them to see their reactions. "I'm not sure why he suddenly changed moods, though. I think it might have something to do with, you know, Sirius and everything. I think he's still a little messed up… emotionally."

Ginny looked carefully at Ron and Hermione, hoping for some kind of answer. After all, Harry had talked more to them during the summer, when he _did_ talk.

Hermione was silent for a few moments. She had that look on her face like she had an idea but was trying to figure out how to come out and say it. "Well," she said slowly, "I have a theory." She paused, still thinking.

Ron looked at her, stopping between bites of egg, waiting for her to finish her thought. "Yes?" he asked.

Hermione seemed to snap to attention. She turned to him, a blank look on her face. "What? Oh, yes, the theory. Well, I think that Harry is bipolar."

She looked at them expectantly, but when they didn't quite get what she had said, she seemed disappointed. "Don't tell me you don't know what bipolarity is! Oh, I should have known I'd have to explain myself. When a person is bipolar, he or she has an emotional disorder where he or she goes from extreme highs to extreme lows in mood. I noticed him acting like this over the summer as well."

Ron seemed very impressed. He thought it was a reasonable explanation for Harry's behaviours. "Wow," he said aloud.

"What?" asked Hermione.

Ron looked up from his eggs. "Nothing, it's just that I didn't realize that Muggle doctors had such a good explanation for something like that."

Hermione looked very smug. "Well, yes, of course they do. You didn't think they were completely useless did you? After all, my parents are doctors. Oh, alright, they're doctors for your teeth, but still…" She sighed. "Harry will get through this," she said to no one in particular.

"Yeah," said Ron. "Right. There's still one thing I don't get," he said, turning to Hermione.

"What's that?"

"Right. So, if Harry's bipolar, does that make the rest of us… regular-polar?" He looked at Hermione inquisitively.

Hermione and Ginny both started laughing when he said this. After a few moments Ron joined in too.

Wiping her eyes, Hermione said "Oh, Ron you are so funny, I love you." She stopped laughing abruptly when she realized what she had said. So did Ron, but he looked more confused, while she just looked embarrassed.

Ginny seemed not to notice the strange tension that was going on across the table. She stopped chuckling when she noticed the other two weren't laughing anymore. She looked at them, seeing in them what they could not see in themselves. She sighed.

"Well, I'm off. I need to pop upstairs and grab my bag before classes start," she said briskly. "See you all at lunch." She dashed off out of the hall.

As she left the Hall,she triednot to look to the left as she passed the Slytherin table. She knew Malfoy would shout something degrading if she did, so she simply averted her eyes.

Once in the entrance hall, she spotted Seamus and Neville coming down the stairs. About time, too. She walked over to him before he could get inside the Great Hall and said "Hey. Where's Dean?"

Seamus looked down at her with a strange look in his eyes. Was it pity? Anger? She couldn't tell. She decided it was nothing and that she just didn't understand boys. Seamus had never really liked her all that much, and hadn't quite gotten used to her hanging around with his best friend last year, so she figured nothing had changed.

"Err… I'm not sure. Look, I'm really hungry, I'm gonna go eat." And with that he slipped past her and into the Hall before she could say another word.

'That was a little strange…' thought Ginny as she skirted up the marble staircase. 'Oh well, I'll talk to Dean at lunch.' And with this last thought she moved her mind on to more pressing matters, like Potions, which she had first thing this morning. Lovely, Potions, earliest class on Mondays. She sighed. It was going to be a long year, no doubt about that.

**A/N: Well, not a bad start I think. I have a few ideas as to where this will go, but suggestions are appreciated. Please critique me on my writing, I'm OCD and always wanting to improve. Please review! Ta!  
-FP**


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